Meet Our Guides
Our staff is top-shelf and we work hard EVERY day
Over my years guiding in Montana, Florida, South America, and Africa, I have worked and fished with many excellent guides. I know what it takes to be an exceptional guide.
Apart from being able to catch fish in any situation, great guides must be fantastic and patient teachers, pleasant and humorous company, stewards of the river and the resource, willing to go the extra mile for you, and most importantly, see to it that you have the best day ever on the river!
We select our guides for their teaching ability and their expertise in putting clients onto feeding fish, whether beginner or expert. They are the perfect picture of patience, knowledge, and professionalism – just what you would expect.
They are all personal friends and the people we fish with on our days off. As full-time guides they know every mood of each river and often times create and innovate new techniques and tricks. Many times it is almost scary how fish-fanatical my guides are!
We have chosen a strong core group of guides and many times turn away trips once our full-timers are booked. Before we hire a guide, we make sure he or she lives up to our standards
Here are a few of our guides
Garrett Munson
Garrett (grinnin' to the left of his happy client) is the classic city-boy-turned-country-boy story in action; born and raised in Chicago, but a Montanan since 1995, the only thing that has carried through the transition has been his passion for fishing. After five years of work with a wilderness adventure therapy program, and serious trout hunting on the side, Garrett gave up the weekly paycheck to become a full-time guide in 2001. We couldn't be more excited, and the fish couldn't be more nervous.
We are especially happy to have Garrett aboard because he is undoubtedly a natural. A day on the river with him is so much more than just a fishing trip; it is a trip of relaxation, a historical excursion, some comic relief, and of course some big trout to boot. With Garrett you always get your money's worth.
Garrett's sage words of advice: 'Mend. Mend again.'
Chris Dombrowski
Chris
(the one on the left) is a long-time friend and one of the best guides we've ever
worked with. We asked Chris to provide us with some bio stuff. It is
genuine Chris, or "Sheepie" as we call him. You'll have to
ask why when you fish with him.
I grew up in Michigan, not too far from the famous Au Sable River where I learned as a teenager to fish dry flies on some of the toughest, prettiest, and most rewarding water in the world. Soon, I was trout-bumming, tying flies commercially, and painting river-side cabins to support my addiction.
I soon came West, settling first in Bozeman, then Twin Bridges, and now Missoula, where I live with my wife. In Montana, I've fished as far east as the Tongue River and as far west as the Yaak, and I can say with a varying degree of certainty that my favorite river is the Next River. I love new water: hearing about, dreaming about it, and discovering it – but sure as hell not reading about it.
I love the East Gallatin for its Model T rip-rap. The Yellowstone for the abandoned homesteads along its glacial banks. My favorite fish in the state live in the Clark Fork and fight harder and longer than any trout I've caught. The Big Hole has a great raptor population near Glen, and I've gotten to know a few golden eagles by name. There's a once–public spring creek not far from a major city that holds rainbows so spooky they split as you peel line off your reel . . . that's a cool place.
I like having home water too, but that's a luxury afforded only to those lucky enough to live here. One of my favorite things about guiding is, after the trip is over, taking out the map of Montana with my clients, and helping them plan the last few days of their trip. 'Oh, you're flying out of Bozeman? Well, you should take this road here, and stop on the Ruby. You want to fish upstream of the bridge outside Sheridan, and you'll want to have plenty of caddis and PMD patterns. PMD's in the morning and caddis in the evening. Fish the riffles and the inside bends.' A look of magic sifts over their eyes, as it should for someone with a few days and a whole state of running water in front of them.
But there's a tinge of sadness, too, of longing, in their faces, as if part of them has realized they will eventually have to leave. But that's OK, often I feel it too. And as David James Duncan, who lives in Montana, says, 'Even in Montana, how I long for Montana.'
Tim Williams
Tim has over 20 years experience teaching and guiding anglers. He resume includes everything from Director of Instruction for Jack Dennis Fly Fishing Schools to managing Dan Baileys, to being a true fish-head. Tim (or TW as we call him) radiates fly fishing in every aspect of his life. His passion for guiding and teaching is evident in his personal philosophy of fishing, which is founded not solely on the pulse of life that is unique to a big bruiser trout screaming downriver, but a passion for enjoying the fly fishing lifestyle. Tim's love comes in teaching anglers and making sure they experience every aspect that comes with spending a day fishing, and it is more than just the fish on the end of your line. It is majestic rivers, great company, good food, a cold beer at the end of the day, and going to bed knowing you get to do it all again tomorrow!. Tim's experience speaks about his knowledge of getting clients onto lots of fish, but, his sense of humor and good charm is unmatched by any guide I have ever worked with.
Trapper Badovinac
Trapper (holding the net) has been a flyfishing guide for eleven years, eight on the Missouri, Smith, and Blackfoot rivers. He produces all his own flies and ties commercially for shops in Montana and Colorado. His expertise and innovative techniques are lauded in the flyfishing community.
Trapper approaches angling with a laid–back philosophy. He assures that, in the sport of flyfishing, the right education and experience is more important than years of experience, and he believes it is a sport anyone can enjoy. 'It's all about leaving your troubles behind,' he says, ' and enjoying the sport of flyfishing. It's a chance to immerse yourself in nature, and standing in a good trout stream testing your skills is a great way to give yourself a break from the sometimes–chaotic world we live in. This very simple and quiet sport can transform you by making your world one of simple pleasures.'
He lives in the woods outside Helena, Montana
Ben Tyson
Ben's a Montanan to the core. And it shows in his dedication to catching fish. Always trying new techniques, experimenting with new flies, and fishing through the nastiest weather, Ben's passion is contagious. His jokes are diverse, too–anything from rated G to ones that would make Hugh Hefner blush. Ben is always one to hoot and holler on each hookup, whether it is a 20-inch brown trout or a three inch whitefish.
He's is sure to be found on the water year-round. Some of his best days are when others are 'too wimpy' to be out fishing. In early and late season, Ben is at his best.
Fishing with Ben is not to be taken lightly: he loves to catch fish and have fun!
Chris Miller
Chris went to Livingston for a summer job at Dan Bailey's Fly Shop in Livingston 8 years ago and hasn't left yet. In that time span, Chris has learned those waters like he's been a local-yokel all his life. He knows which stone to turn and which fork to take to get fish on your line.
He's just as at-home in a gin-clear spring creek as he is bombing big dries into a fast pocket on the Yellowstone. Chris has guided in Chile, honed his skills on Midwestern spring creeks, and learned to tie from master tiers. 'Miller Time', as we have come to call fishing with Chris, is (pardon the pun) as good as it gets . . . but, he is always stiving to make it better.
Shane Erickson
Shane hails from Lincoln, Montana, well-known because it is the headwaters of the Blackfoot, and was once home to the mysterious Unabomber. But Shane's not a mystery. He came to us with the highest recommendations. Shane has spent all his life along the Blackfoot River, and when he wasn't fishing the Blackfoot he was either fishing the Missouri or hunting the hills around Lincoln.
Shane is also a big game hunting outfitter. His business, God's Country Outfitters is highly respected in Montana.